What are some new research projects in the field of ‘smart’ insulin? | Explained

The research will be conducted at universities in the United States, Australia, and China. 

Published - August 21, 2024 11:34 am IST

Image used for representation only.

Image used for representation only. | Photo Credit: Tanvi Manhas/Chennai

The story so far: The Type 1 Diabetes Grand Challenge, a partnership between the Steve Morgan Foundation, Diabetes UK and JDRF, on Monday, August 12, 2024, announced grants of over £2.7 million for new research in the development of next-generation insulins to manage type 1 diabetes. The funding will accelerate research of insulins that imitate how healthy pancreas work, the initiative said.

What is type 1 diabetes?

Type 1 diabetes is a chronic condition characterised by deficient insulin production and requires frequent insulin administration, mostly daily or sometimes even multiple times a day. Without insulin, glucose continues to build up in the bloodstream, causing high blood sugar levels. The insulin hormone helps regulate blood sugar by allowing glucose to enter cells to be used up for manufacturing energy.

More about the grants

The funding will be provided to six new international research projects focused on developing the next-generation, or novel, insulins. The research will be conducted at universities in the United States, Australia, and China.

“The funded six new research projects address major shortcomings in insulin therapy. Potentially minimising the risk of hypoglycaemia through an insulin-glucagon combination would ease one of the major concerns associated with insulin therapy today. Therefore, these research projects, if successful might do no less than heralding a new era in insulin therapy,” Tim Heise, Vice Chair of Novel Insulins Scientific Advisory Panel of the Type 1 Diabetes Grand Challenge, said.

According to the Type 1 Diabetes Grand Challenge, four of the newly-funded projects are related to glucose responsive insulins (GRIs), which can respond to changing blood glucose levels.

GRIs activate only when there is a certain amount of glucose in the bloodstream and become inactive when it drops below a stipulated point. This is expected to prevent both hyperglycaemia (high blood glucose) and hypoglycaemia (low blood glucose).

Another research project focuses on developing a short-acting insulin. Among the currently available insulins, there is a delay between the administration of the drug and its action on blood glucose – even with the fastest acting variants. This can cause a spike in blood glucose levels before insulin can lower it, thus endangering the person.

The last funded project focuses on combining insulin with glucagon.

Also read: ‘Insulin’ homoeopathic tablets under CDSCO lens

Glucagon is also secreted by pancreas, and it increases blood sugar levels to prevent it from dropping below a critical level. The project relies on the concept that having both insulin and glucagon in one formulation can stabilise blood sugar levels.

GRI projects

The four GRI projects are being researched at Monash University, Australia, Wayne State University, U.S., Jinhua Institute of Zhejiang University in China, and University of Notre Dame, U.S.

The Monash University project involves development of a second generation of nano sugar-insulin system, based on advanced nanotechnology. In the first-generation experiment of this insulin delivery system, insulin and a glucose-sensing molecule in tiny particles called nano sugars are injected under the skin. These nano sugars react to very small changes in blood glucose and release insulin only when glucose levels are outside a range, without any intervention from the patient. The aim of this experiment is to reduce the number of times people with type 1 have to inject insulin.

Researchers at the Wayne University are working to develop a “smart insulin” which can detect changes in blood glucose levels and respond by releasing the right amount of insulin at the right time. Chemical engineer Zhiqiang Cao’s team plans to develop a smarter insulin which is “more” sensitive to changing glucose levels, because some novel insulins are not as powerful as the currently available ones, resulting in higher doses to obtain a similar impact on blood glucose levels.

The third project, conducted by researchers at the Jinhua Institute of Zhejiang University in China, involves novel insulins that respond immediately to rising blood glucose levels. This novel insulin forms a reservoir of insulin under the skin once it is injected, and can therefore be used either daily or weekly. The experiment uses an insulin/polymer complex as the starting point and adds a safe glucose-sensing molecule to it. In the project, the team will improve the GRI and ensure all components work together effectively. The next step will be to make sure the GRI releases insulin properly from the reservoir, especially when blood glucose levels are high.

Researchers at the University of Notre Dame, U.S, developed a smart insulin delivery system that uses tiny particles called nanocomplexes, which contain insulin. These nanocomplexes can also be injected under the skin to create a reservoir to automatically release insulin if blood sugar rises. The project will be developed further and tested in pigs exposed to relevant real-life scenarios.

Ultrafast insulin

Scientists at the Stanford University, U.S. are working on developing and testing an ultrafast-acting insulin that’s only active when needed and could reduce the risk of blood glucose highs and lows in people with type 1 diabetes.

The current fast-acting insulins are a group of six molecules which need to be separated to form single insulin molecules to regulate blood sugar. Sometimes, even these single molecules cluster into pairs, hindering the blood sugar regulation. The new research will focus on designing an insulin molecule that doesn’t cluster so that it acts in the bloodstream quickly. The design is based on insulin molecules found in the venom from the cone snail, a type of underwater snail that uses insulin as a weapon.

Insulin + glucagon

A team of researchers at the Indiana University, U.S. will combine insulin and glucagon in their project, to prevent the highs and lows in blood glucose. The molecules has been tested in rats with type 1 diabetes and found that it can reduce the risk of hypoglycemia both at mealtimes and throughout the day. The experiment will also test the stability of the molecule and explore different ways to manufacture it.

0 / 0
Sign in to unlock member-only benefits!
  • Access 10 free stories every month
  • Save stories to read later
  • Access to comment on every story
  • Sign-up/manage your newsletter subscriptions with a single click
  • Get notified by email for early access to discounts & offers on our products
Sign in

Comments

Comments have to be in English, and in full sentences. They cannot be abusive or personal. Please abide by our community guidelines for posting your comments.

We have migrated to a new commenting platform. If you are already a registered user of The Hindu and logged in, you may continue to engage with our articles. If you do not have an account please register and login to post comments. Users can access their older comments by logging into their accounts on Vuukle.